(A) Generally.
(1) The Board of Fire and Police Commissioners shall appoint all officers and members of the Fire and Police Departments of the municipality including the Chief of Police and the Chief of the Fire Department, unless the City Council shall by ordinance as to them otherwise provide.
(2) The appointment of the Fire Chief and Police Chief shall be subject to the limitations and restrictions otherwise provided in this case including specifically but not limited to, those limitations and provisions contained in Chapters 37 and 38 hereof.
(B) Probation. All initial appointments to the lowest rank of firefighter shall be subject to a period of probation not exceeding one year, except as otherwise may be provided by collective bargaining agreement. Unless otherwise provided by collective bargaining agreement, all other appointments, including original and promotional (including the Fire and Police Chief) shall be subject to a period of probation for such term as the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners shall, by rule, determine not exceeding, for police officers, 18 months from the date of the appointment or promotion and for firefighters, 12 months from the date of the appointment or promotion or as otherwise allowed by ILCS Ch. 65, Act 5, § 10-2.1-6.3. Unless otherwise provided by collective bargaining agreement, the Board shall have authority during any such probationary period to discharge or demote the probationary appointee without assigning cause or without a hearing, Unless otherwise provided by collective bargaining agreement, the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners may, for good cause, extend the period of probation of an appointment for police officers by an additional period not exceeding six months from the expiration of the original period of probation. Good cause may include, but is not limited to, the failure of the probationary employee to serve a sufficient period of active duty during the period of probation, to permit the board to evaluate the appointee's competence and qualification to perform the duties required of the appointed position. For firefighters, the period of probation may be extended only in the event that a firefighter is required to be a licensed paramedic, during which extended period the sole reason that the firefighter may be discharged without a hearing is for failing to meet the requirements for paramedic licensure. Nothing herein shall be construed nor shall it affect any salary or other benefits to which a firefighter or policeman would otherwise be entitled under any collective bargaining between the employee’s collective bargaining representative and the city.
(C) Firefighter; EMT. Members appointed to the Fire Department, as provided herein, shall within 12 months of their appointment, obtain and maintain certification or a license as an emergency medical technician - basic (herein “EMT -B”) with the Illinois Department of Public Health. Failure to obtain said EMT-B license within said time, or failure to maintain the same shall constitute cause for removal from the Department. Nothing herein shall be construed nor shall it affect any salary or other benefits to which a firefighter or policeman, would otherwise be entitled under any collective bargaining between the employee’s collective bargaining representative and the city.
(D) Miscellaneous. If a member of the Department is appointed Chief of Police or Chief of the Fire Department prior to being eligible to retire on pension he or she shall be considered as on furlough from the rank held immediately prior to this appointment as Chief, if his or her term terminates, or he or she resigns as Chief or is discharged as Chief prior to attaining eligibility to retire on pension, he or she shall revert to and be established in the prior rank, and thereafter be entitled to all the benefits and emoluments of the prior rank without regard as to whether a vacancy then exits in the rank.
(1) Term of appointment. The appointment of the Fire Chief and Police Chief shall be subject to the limitations and restrictions otherwise provided in this code, including specifically, but not limited to, those limitations and provision, contained in Chapters 37 and 38 hereof.
(2) Annual evaluation. The Mayor and Director of Administrative Services shall conduct annual evaluations of the Fire and Police Chiefs. The Mayor and Director of Administrative Services may seek the advice and council from the Chairs of the Fire and Police Aldermanic Committees. Such evaluations may include assessment and evaluation of the respective chiefs leadership, planning, organizational and administrative abilities, judgment and problem solving abilities, oral and written communication skills, attitude, skill in development of subordinate employees, relationship with subordinate employees, administration and the public, as well as such other matters which the Mayor and Director of Administrative Services may determine to be of assistance in evaluating the performance of the Chiefs. The Mayor shall report the results of such evaluation to the respective Chiefs, the City Council, and the Fire and Police Commission.
(E) Promotion; rank. Except as otherwise provided for the Police Chief and Deputy Police Chiefs, all appointments to the Police Department other than that of the lowest rank, shall be from the rank next below that to which the appointment is made, except where there are less than three applicants for the appointment. In such case, applicants may be taken from the second rank next below that to which the appointment is made. Except as otherwise provided for the Fire Chief and Deputy Fire Chiefs, all appointments to the Fire Department other than that of the lowest rank shall be made in accordance with the Illinois Fire Department Promotion Act, ILCS Ch. 50, Act. 742, §§ 1 et seq., and any applicable collective bargaining agreement. The Chief of Police, Deputy Police Chiefs, the Chief of the Fire Department and Deputy Fire Chiefs shall be appointed as provided in Chapters 37 and 38 of this Code. Notwithstanding any other rule or regulation of the Board or otherwise, a member who has not completed a promotional probationary appointment shall likewise be eligible for appointment to the position of Police or Fire Chief respectively.
(F) Certificate of appointment. The sole authority to issue certificates of appointment shall be vested in the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners and all certificates of appointments issued to any officer or member of the Fire or Police Department of a municipality shall be signed by the Chairperson and Secretary respectively of the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners of the municipality, upon appointment of the officer or members of the Fire and Police Department of the municipality by action of the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners.
(G) Auxiliary police officers. The term POLICE OFFICERS as used in this subchapter does not include auxiliary police officers as provided for by statute.
(H) City officers. Any full time member of the regular Fire or Police Department of the city, is a city officer under the provisions of this code.
(1980 Code, § 11.604) (Ord. 9309, passed 6-26-2017)